Is it possible to have a soundless mind? Know about this surprising condition

mind incapable of imagining auditory sounds, often linked to

aphantasia

. This rare condition affects about 1% of people, with no apparent drawbacks and potential attention benefits.

Such individuals are unable to imagine a dog barking, a police siren ringing, or songs. In short, they have no inner voices.
“Scientists are fascinated by how the brain makes or doesn’t make imaginary sounds such as the inner voice. But for writers, musicians ,and poets, it can be a key part of the creative process, so they have insights to share, too,” says Professor Tony Lambert, of the School of Psychology in a statement.

Scientists from Waipapa Taumata Rau, University of Auckland proposed the rare condition of a silent mind in 2021. Sang Hyun Kim, who is a student at the University of Auckland student Sang Hyun Kim, has a silent mind. Kim says that the idea of other people hearing imaginary voices seemed ‘freaky’ to him, and he’ll be fascinated to see what research turns up about

auditory imagery

.
As the research on the topic progresses, the Univesity is planning to host a global conference on sounds imagined in the mind. This event ‘Mind’s Ear and Inner Voice’ is for scientists, philosophers, musicians, poets, and writers. The event will take place in Auckland from April 14 to 16. The conference will see people sharing personal accounts of experiencing both anauralia and hyperauralia.

Hyperauralia

is a condition where people experience extremely vivid auditory imagery. While some people say they can recreate a symphony with all its details in their minds, others report weaker auditory imagery.
1 percent of people in New Zealand experience anauralia. This condition is often accompanied by aphantasia, where they lack visual imagination as well. There is no downside to a silent mind, and recent research has shown that such individuals have higher levels of attention.

“Overall, auditory imagery has attracted far less research attention than visual imagery. Our conference is unique in focusing on these issues from a strongly inter-disciplinary perspective,” Lambert adds. Lambert grew keen about the rare condition after meeting Adam Zeman, the scientist who coined the term aphantasia. “This got me thinking about the absence of auditory imagery. Are there people who don’t imagine voices, music, or other sounds? If so, how common is this? What are the psychological implications of experiencing a silent inner world? We now have good answers to the first two questions. The last question is a much larger one, but I believe we have made strong progress,” he shares.

The research on the condition is progressing.
(Pic courtesy: iStock)